Convoy merchant ships were protected targets, not bait

Were merchant ships in convoy battles effectively being used as bait?

No; they were the targets the escorts were trying to protect, although defending them could create chances to engage the attacker.

The answer rejects the label of bait because the merchant ships were the enemy's actual targets. Bait would be exposed primarily to draw an attacker into a prepared ambush, whereas convoy escorts were defending the ships and cargo that submarines or raiders already sought. Protection could create opportunities to counterattack, but it did not make the merchantmen expendable decoys. Their desire for guns also reflects the fact that an escort screen did not remove every need for self-defence.